Unleash Your Potential: When an interview goes wrong

Monday

Sep 3, 2012 at 2:00 AM

We've all been subjected to an interview that has gone badly. You're enthusiastically entrenched in a process that suddenly takes a nosedive, and then you find yourself invoking damage control and scrambling to turn it around.

Lenny Keitel

We've all been subjected to an interview that has gone badly. You're enthusiastically entrenched in a process that suddenly takes a nosedive, and then you find yourself invoking damage control and scrambling to turn it around.

In situations like this, candidates often lose sight of the fact that the role of the interviewer is to screen out candidates. Regardless of how appealing your resume and LinkedIn profile are, you're wasting your time if you cannot sell yourself effectively during an interview. If your heart and mind are set on the opportunity, it may not be too late to salvage the situation.

If you are certain you've made a blunder, stay calm and, above all, don't panic. A busy interviewer may not have detected your faux pas. Even if he or she did, it may be perceived as insignificant and dismissed depending on how the remainder of the interview progresses. If you make a mistake, don't dwell on it. That only serves as a distraction and makes matters worse.

To minimize mistakes, always be attentive to what the interviewer is asking you. Take notes, when appropriate, then segue back to a question and rephrase your response. Alternatively, the thank-you note serves as an indispensable tool to convey relevant points you may have omitted during the interview. Oftentimes, your last impression is more influential than the first.

Imagine you've been confronted with a question from left field. You're stunned, and an uncomfortable silence prevails as you seek a plausible response. An interviewer may blindside you with a stumper such as: "Which 'Star Wars' character do you best identify with and why?"

To mitigate a chasm of silence, employ the same tactic that savvy politicians often utilize. Change to subject to a topic that is closely related such as: "Although I'm not familiar with 'Star Wars' characters, I can name several notable individuals whom I admire and explain why."

You're placing a spin on the original question, with which you're not comfortable, thereby diffusing any consternation. Being resourceful is a highly appealing quality.

Regardless of your passion for the position and persuasive responses, the interviewer may be detached from the conversation. He's staring into space, looking at his watch and appearing disinterested — avoiding the eye contact and the attention you deserve. Take the initiative and proceed with your own questions to stimulate interest. Seek out what he finds appealing about working for the company or perhaps explore common interests. Never allow a lull in an interview to continue. If it persists, contemplate if you could prosper working for this dynamo.

Think of an interview as simply a conversation with a specific purpose. The better you understand the needs of the employer and how to fill those needs, the more smoothly the interview will proceed. Simply being considered for an interview should bolster your self-confidence. Reality dictates that some interviews do not merit salvaging. Consider if it is worth bending over backward in a futile and exasperating campaign.

Moving on to other irons in the fire should never be perceived as a poor decision.

Lenny Keitel runs Hudson Valley Resumes (www.hudsonvalleyresumes.com), a resume writing service in Monroe. He can be reached at info@hudsonvalleyresumes.com, 782-6714 or 914-391-5300.